Weekend Observations & Links

How was your weekend? Hope it was a fun one!

Mine made me feel very ladylike which, generally, I'm not ;) Here's a bit of my weekend...

Had pretty much the best high tea ever at the new Butter Tearoom, here in Vancouver. Rosie, you've done it again. The mini buns with tuna and a layer of potato chips, were my favourite. 

I always love shooting "before and after" stories, of all kinds. Gotta love a good transformation. This one was shot for Canadian Living magazine, and designed by Colleen of Vintage Home. She took a run down old shed, some beaten up furniture and accessories, above, and transformed them for a tiny guest cottage. The whole story, with all the little details, is in the new issue of Canadian Living. 

A little link love too:

•Loved this d.i.y. round up at Poppytalk
•I know it's uber trendy, but I do love a little modern cross-stitch. Spotted this at Hege in France
•I've mentioned my Zaishu before, and now I feel it's time for a new one! Take a look at the new designs at Zaishu. 
•Hanging houseplants can be great...in moderation of course. Loved some of these at Decouvrir Design

That's it for today! Back soon.
janis

Weekend Observations

Technically, it's still the weekend here (Remberance Day long weekend) but why wait for tomorrow? Hope you've all had a good weekend!

As mentioned in my last post, I was hoping for a calm and quiet weekend, and that's what I had. Here's a bit of it...

The Cross is located in Vancouver BC. Click here for more.

I also did a contributor post for Poppytalk today. I transformed a vintage bench by using a simple photo transfer technique. Click here for the how-to and the finished project! 

Enjoy the rest of your day!

janis

Weekend Observations

Happy Monday everyone! Hope you had a great weekend.

It was the perfect weekend (nothing but rain), to stay in a finally get some things done. This is some of what went on around here...

I think our outdoor furniture should come inside now. Summer is over. 

Finally painted out the dark brown (why did that happen?) wall, and made a blind for my office. Makes 

working a whole lot more pleasant now. I've had this Hawaiian bark cloth languishing in my closet for a years, so thought I'd do something with it. I can only sew uber basic things, so when I say this blind was easy...take my word for it ;) For the how-to, click here.

That was my weekend, along with a project for Poppytalk to be posted this week. What did you get up to this weekend? 

Have a great day! 

janis

Weekend Observations

I'm a little late with this one but, technically, it's still the weekend (Canada Day weekend) ;) How was your weekend?

I received a copy of Canadian Living magazine (thanks Brett!) featuring a story I shot awhile back. "Trash to Treasure" features the talented Colleen Sawatsky, of Vintage Home, and her patio make-over.  Heather helped with the styling. Here's a peek....

I also added some prints to my etsy shop. A series of images of Salton Sea and a couple of pink houses....

Thanks for stopping by!

Back soon,

janis

A D.I.Y. Family for Friday

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you had a great week.

I thought I'd share some pics from a story I shot for Anthology magazine (issue 6). Heather, along with homeowner Mike, did the styling. It was one of the nicest shoots ever. Mike, Ann and their kids, Kaya and Zane, were all so easy to work with.

The "life" lightbox was inspired by the same image, as a poster, from the old 70's show "Three's Company". I love that!

Mike's studio in the back yard. He made the cushions, by the way. Crafty guy.

Kaya and her mom, Ann, made the sweet little mobile. 

This family is all shades of talented. They basically built their home, and have a great eye for putting together antiques, family heirlooms, and their own handmade creations. For the full story (and more pics), check out the new issue of Anthology (the entire issue is fantastic!).

Back soon!
janis

Sunday Observations

How are you all doing? Hope you're enjoying your weekend, where ever you are. I just watched the Canucks win game 4 in the Western Conference final. 5 more wins to go!

Besides watching hockey, I got up to a few other things today....

That was my Sunday. What did you do? Anyone out there watching hockey these days? ;)

Back soon!
janis

Sunday Observations

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there! Hope you had a great day.

While out to pick up some supplies for my project today, I noticed that this fantastic old neon sign was back in action. Do any of you Vancouverites know what's happening with the Only Seafoods Cafe?

I found a pink Chinese tea tin, and discovered it was a perfect holder for chalk and a chalk brush.

 

I love green chalkboard paint. Won't be able to write on the door until tomorrow, as it's still a bit damp...and I have to meet mom for dinner ;)

Well that winds up my weekend. What did you all get up to?

Back soon!
janis

It's a Good Friday for a little DIY

Hi Everyone! I'm a guest contributor at Poppytalk today. If you're looking for a fun and easy project for the weekend, check out my my DIY over there. Here's a little sample.

I'll be back soon! Happy Friday!
Janis

A Little Lamp Lift

I did a little guest post on Poppytalk (one of the best blogs out there), yesterday, and thought I'd give it a mention here. This was one easy, but extremely satisfying, project! Head over to Poppytalk for the "how-to".

If you try this out, let me know. Would love to see what you did! Back again soon.

Origami Paper Boxes

March 5th 2013 
Hello! It's a couple of years since I posted this, but I will be updating the directions very soon. Perhaps with a video of sorts. My apologies to those who have found my directions confusing. I'm slowly learning how to be a better "instructor". I promise to make it a little more clear for early next week.
Thanks for your patience!
janis
x

I needed to make paper boxes for a party I'll be going to, so I thought I'd share the process with you. They are super easy to make, and are perfect for that little gift that needs just the right size box.

You'll need the following materials to make a 7cm box:
Heavy weight paper (I'm using bits of paper that I have languishing in a drawer)
pencil
ruler
exacto knife
bone folder
white glue or a glue stick

a) Cut a 20cm square for the base and a 14.5cm square for the lid.

b) With a pencil, lightly mark the diagonals of the squares, on the wrong side of the paper. This is the guide for the first folds.

c) Fold corners into the centre of square using the pencil marks as a guide. Crease the folds with a bone folder.

d) For the base, fold two opposite sides to meet in the middle. These folds should measure 3.5cm. Crease and unfold, then repeat this for the remaining two sides.

e) To make the lid, fold two opposite sides - the folds should measure 1.4cm each. Crease, unfold then repeat process for the two remaining sides.

f) There will be a small square formed, by the folds, on each corner of the base and lid. Fold a diagonal crease across each square with the point facing inwards. Repeat on remaining corners on both lid and base.

g) Unfold two opposite sides on both the base and the lid. Refold other sides so they stand up straight. Pull up a third flap and tuck the small creases underneath. Repeat on the remaining side. Glue down the 4 points in the centre of both the lid and base. You may also wish to cut out a small piece of a contrasting paper, to line the bottom of the box. Voila! You have an origami paper box.

That's it for now! Have a lovely day.

A Trip to Chinatown with Poppytalk

Hello bloggers! Check out Poppytalk for my "Getting Crafty in Chinatown" post. I showed Jan all my favourite shops for cheap pick-me-ups. Hope you are inspired to check out your city's Chinatown. Let me know what you think!

By the way, if you missed Baked On Monday....it was a pretty tasty one. Check it out.
I hope you have a lovely day!